Britney Spears declared her conservatorship "too much" five years ago.
Britney Spears
The 'Gimme More' singer hasn't had control of her affairs since her breakdown in 2008 and though concern about the situation has escalated in recent months - fuelled by the 'Framing Britney Spears' documentary, which was released earlier this year - it's now emerged the 39-year-old pop star herself has been expressing her unhappiness at the situation for some time.
Documents obtained by the New York Times newspaper showed a court investigator wrote in a 2016 report: "[Britney] articulated she feels the conservatorship has become an oppressive and controlling tool against her."
The investigator told how Britney felt her father and co-conservator, Jamie Spears, had "too much control … Too, too much" and had the final say on everything from who she dated to how she decorated her home, with the 'Toxic' hitmaker complaining he'd stopped her from changing her kitchen cupboards because he felt she was spending too much money.
The 2016 report showed the troubled star had requested the conservatorship be terminated as soon as possible, having described how she was always surrounded by security and her minders and assistant had control of her credit card.
The investigator wrote: "“She is ‘sick of being taken advantage of’ and she said she is the one working and earning her money but everyone around her is on her payroll."
Ultimately the report concluded the conservatorship should stay as it was in Britney's best interests due to her complex finances, susceptibility to undue influence and “intermittent” drug issues.
However, it also called for “a pathway to independence and the eventual termination of the conservatorship.”
In 2019, the 'Womanizer' singer told the judge had she'd been forced to stay at a mental health facility, which she thought was done as a punishment for speaking out and making an objection during a rehearsal, and she claimed she'd experienced one of the "scariest moments of her life" when she was "forced" into performing while ill with a fever.
The publication also uncovered documents from a 2014 closed hearing, in which Britney's attorney - who was appointed by the court - raised concerns about her father's drinking and a "shopping list" of other issues, asking for him to be removed from his position.
Lawyers acting for Jamie argued it was "inappropriate" for him to have to take random alcohol tests and the judge is said to have agreed and said: “Absolutely inappropriate. And who is she to be demanding that of anybody?”
Britney's lawyer, Samuel D. Ingham, said the singer felt her concerns were being dismissed.
The transcript recorded him as saying: “She said to me, when she gave me this shopping list, that she anticipates that, as it has been done before, the court will simply sweep it under the carpet and ignore any negative inferences with regard to Mr Spears."
Britney is due to address the court on Tuesday (23.06.21) and is expected to raise her concerns about Jamie's ongoing position as her co-conservator.
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